[Discuss] how to manage a bunch of ms boxes?

[John Abreau]

Do you wipe the drives and reinstall? Do you have a standard suite of
software to install on them?

There's a project I've been meaning to try out called "Unattended",
which does automated, unattended Windows OS and application
installation and configuration using a Linux server. I believe it's
supposed to work much like Solaris Jumpstart.

    http://unattended.sourceforge.net




John Abreau / Executive Director, Boston Linux & Unix
OLD GnuPG KeyID: D5C7B5D9 / Email: abreauj at gmail.com
OLD GnuPG FP: 72 FB 39 4F 3C 3B D6 5B E0 C8 5A 6E F1 2C BE 99
2011 GnuPG KeyID: 32A492D8 / Email: abreauj at gmail.com
2011 GnuPG FP:



On Sun, Oct 16, 2011 at 10:25 AM, Eric Chadbourne
<eric.chadbourne at gmail.com> wrote:
> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
> Hash: SHA1
>
> Hi All,
>
> I have a public computer lab with a little under 40 windows PCs.  The
> teachers and students are always finding novel ways to break them.
> They must run Windows.  As the sole IT guy in our org keeping these
> machines working is eating up too much of my time.
>
> Does anybody have any suggestions on how to keep these boxes running?
>
> Here's what I'm currently thinking of doing.  Install Ubuntu and
> virtualbox on all of them.  Upon automatic login a shell script starts
> that checks for the latest windows image.  If the PC already has the
> latest image then start virtualbox in full screen mode else download
> image and then start vb.  This way every user has the same exact
> 'computer'.  It will make my life and the teachers lives easier.
>
> What do you think?
>
> Thanks,
> Eric
> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
> Version: GnuPG v2.0.17 (MingW32)
>
> iQEcBAEBAgAGBQJOmulBAAoJEMepoCRXYYMJLJgH/RgZ/DfvZTcyH+y4OZX801it
> iQZTGswQV6GORUMWH+RwE1rNCQcNmoQThx2Ki+lmJ/WIStxZXYa1VPWG1j/0k8tF
> xmvpqUZ+SNZ+zA0PEvce2FY1fmq7sfu6NDpn24WSWbTJvmJMM7aYalIEXbJshd7n
> 2xM5BEwjFmGuMYCS4f3rRZLzf7HMUfI+VpnBG6+BDftoWkrh+PLMh0vDByXL1gYv
> 6AIlVj7lKaP8JnfpaX7a/V+5JplH/oUTwb6IysgBp4K9QQ0Gy60JQsbyVPDVPgDV
> RZZHu+Ge7A9i2I9mnYQI4G1+4/VDpJZsPHTFTbdr+UjEUHSybwwnzGQimAhRnTs=
> =FRTt
> -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
> _______________________________________________
> Discuss mailing list
> Discuss at blu.org
> http://lists.blu.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
>